Paradise from another perspective – Wow, just wow!

Amazing starfish shape!

Did you know that the five, red pathways at Punta Sur Isla Mujeres are actually in the shape of a starfish? 

We didn’t.  

It’s a bit like discovering the three thousand year-old chalk image in the hills of England is really an ancient 360-foot long rendition of a white horse.  

Okay, maybe it’s not that notable, but for us the starfish was very cool to see.  

Caution - the four carbon-fiber blades are powerful

Expat David Daniel captured the image with his newest boy-toy: a DJI Phantom 3 UAV.  Also known by the misnomer of drone, the UAV Unmanned Aerial Vehicle or UAS Unmanned Aircraft System comes in a variety of shapes and sizes. 

Highly conscious of the potential danger of the remote-controlled UAV, 

David pointed out the four whirling carbon-fiber blades as they spun up, lifting the vehicle aloft.  

David: It's easy to fly this UAV

Then with a noise akin to a hive of active bees the aircraft sailed away, hovering off the southern point of Isla Mujeres as it broadcast streaming video to David’s I-Pad.  

Woohoo!  What beautiful images.  

Wow!  Isla Mujeres from Punta Sur

For both David and Diane Daniel traditional photography is an outlet for their creativity, and operating the UAV gives David yet another instrument for crafting beautiful images.

At Punta Sur, a family of curious Argentinian tourists quickly gathered around David as he manoeuvred the UAV for better images.  

Apparently interested curiosity is a familiar reaction, typically with the technology savvy under-thirty crowd, and especially Europeans. 

Images difficult to see in bright sunlight

When operating the remote controlled device he and Diane are mindful to not intrude on anyone privacy.  They don’t buzz low over crowds, or deliberately focus on individuals.  

David said even with the new advanced cameras measuring distance from space is difficult.  A few times they used the UAV to try to locate a pod of dolphins that cavort along the eastern side of the island, only to discover that pinpointing a fast moving six-foot creature is nearly impossible.  On the other hand, flying around a stationary object is a breeze. 

Diane Daniel, keeping our very hot dog Sparky company

UAV’s are primarily fun toys used for taking great videos or stills from a vantage point normally unavailable to photographers.  They also have useful commercial applications; for instance when two Canadian friends recently decided to sell their home and the real estate company immediately scheduled an aerial photo session with a UAV.  

It’s the new standard for real estate listings.  David says he operates his UAV just for the enjoyment. 

My photo of David's DJI Phantom 3 UAV 

Currently the UAV’s owned by individuals now vastly outnumber military drones, with estimates of over a million sold by 2015.  The popularity has created a few hazards, necessitating new laws to govern their use.  Whether you refer to them as drones, UAV’s or a UAS they are banned within five miles of airports worldwide, and prisons in a number of countries.  The newer models are equipped with updated software that has no fly zones, or hot spots, prohibiting the vehicle from lifting off.  Older version still exist prompting many countries to erect signage at airports forbidding the use of this type of equipment. 

The drone's photo of me taking its photo

It turns out our home is within that five mile radius of our local almost-abandoned, and seldom-used airport. So no high-flying photographs of our casa.  It’s probably a good thing, I think our ‘dainties’ were still hanging on the laundry line.

If you would like to see more great photographs and videos visit David and Diane’s New Nomad’s Facebook page.  Here’s the link.  https://www.facebook.com/NewNomads/?fref=ts

Their photography will wow you!

Hasta Luego

Lynda & Lawrie

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Come to papa!  David Daniel and his new toy.